All posts tagged Bruce Ratner

Bruce Ratner, chairman and CEO of Forest City Ratner Cos., sat down with WSJ’s Lee Hawkins to discuss the new Barclays Center arena and his shift from majority owner of the New Jersey Nets to owning 20% of the Brooklyn version of the NBA team.

In the interview, Ratner describes how he “just feel in love” with Brooklyn. “I saw so many things in Brooklyn. It had a legacy and a history that’s unparalleled,” he said.

The Barclays Center has been a lightning rod for controversy, from the eminent domain case that allowed government agencies to acquire the land to neighbors who fear an influx of traffic or a change in the area’s character thanks to the new bars the center will attract.

Still, Ratner says he never wavered in his desire to the arena — even after the 2008 economic crash. Watch the full video interview after the jump.Read More »

Mikhail Prokhorov, center, at the congress of the Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs in Moscow last month.

By Reed Albergotti

The NBA’s Board of Governors approved the sale of the New Jersey Nets to Mikhail Prokhorov Tuesday, making the Russian billionaire the first non-American owner of an NBA franchise.

Prokhorov agreed to pay $260 million to current owner Bruce Ratner for an 80% stake in the franchise and 45% stake in the long-delayed arena the Nets expect to build and move to in Brooklyn. He also has an option to purchase 20% of the surrounding real-estate development Ratner plans to build.

“We are pleased,” said NBA commissioner David Stern in a written statement. “We anticipate that his passion for the game and business acumen will be of considerable value not only to the Nets franchise but to the entire NBA.”

Since Ratner and Prokhorov came to an agreement last fall, the NBA has been vetting Prokhorov, a controversial figure because of his business history and his 2007 arrest in France on suspicion of prostitution. (He has denied any wrongdoing in that case and was never charged.) During the review process, Prokhorov said he had engaged in paying bribes, but that those days were behind him. Read More »

Freddy’s Bar, the Brooklyn dive that fought vehemently against the massive Atlantic Yards construction project, is finally closing up shop on Dean Street. But not without a party.

Writing on the bar’s web site, manager Donald O’Finn said there would be a “victory party” on Friday, April 30 to celebrate their fight against Bruce Ratner, the project’s billionaire developer. The bar will close on May 1.

What constitutes a victory for Freddy’s remains unclear. The bar, along with other local businesses and homeowners, fought the $4.9 billion Atlantic Yards project, which will include a new arena for the soon-to-be Brooklyn Nets as well as residential and commercial towers.

The stadium opponents lost their challenge in court. The bar will relocate to a building near Union Street and Fourth Avenue. Read More »